I saw the movie on Thursday, and overall it was a great film. At the end of the movie the three others I was with (Beca, Cara & Bradley) were psyched about "avenging" Chicago and were all ready to register they day it opens. "When do we start training?" they pondered. I admit, it was a motivating film. But I still have no urge to run Chicago this year. One thing the movie repeated several times was the idea that changing the finish line will change your life. This may be true for many, but I didn't feel that kind of emotion. I do have to admit that the process itself (training) did change my life, it an extremely positive way. The movie brought back many memories of my training experience, the good and the bad.
And while my friends had the urge to try to conquer the Chicago Marathon,
I felt more of a longing for the training itself. Not the time it took, or the way it completely overtook all aspects of my life ... but the routine, the comradierie, the feeling I got when a long run was finally over, and most of all the "well deserved" after run breakfasts.
I think the movie encouraged me to participate in more of this part of "the marathon". Running with my friends and actually just enjoying the experience. Thus, for now I think I am going to focus on shorter races that wont be all-consuming and take it from there :)
Back to Running
On Friday I went to the gym as promised, and did 3.1 on the treadmill. I did push is a bit more than normal and paced at 10:30. I am sure I can run a bit faster than that when "pushing" but since I havent been running it was about as much as I was willing to do for now! I also signed up for another race - the Shamrock Shuffle. Beca, Bradley & Cara tried to instill fear in me by suggesting that this race sells out quickly, so I caved. The Shamrock Shuffle is an 8K ... and takes place at the end of March. So hopefully I can work up to a 5 miler by then ;)
Photos courtesy of xpistwv and mxruben.
5 comments:
Yes Grasshopper, it's not the destination that's important, but the journey!
With 3.1 on a treadmill now, you'll be in great shape by the time the Shamrock rolls around.
Good luck and have fun improving!
I don't want to avenge Chicago either. At least not right now. Maybe in a few years I'll have my vengeance.
You so summed up what I've been feeling. I don't miss the training, I don't miss the amount of time it took, but I do miss the routine. The feeling after running further than you've ever run before.
I have no desire to run Chicago this year, and can't say if that will ever change for any future years. I was too scarred by that event and will probably stick with smaller ones like Grand Rapids, or maybe the Milwaukee Lakefront Marathon. Again, not this year though.
I will say, having just run my first 5K week back, the first thing I did when I got home (other than try to warm up, it was -3F out) was look online for the next one. They are fun - you still get that pre-race vibe, the anticipation in the start corral. It just doesn't take as long.
Its good to see I have company - with my running group I am the outcast. They ALL are talking about Chicago ... except me :) It's also nice to know that we all (though we complain each step of the way) gain a lot from the training process, ultimately looking back at it fondly!
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